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This evergreen to semi-deciduous tree or shrub grows to 4 m tall, with a dense, roundish crown. The old stems are buff-grey in colour. The branchlets are brown and are scattered with pale grey lenticels and the new twigs are very hairy. The large leaves are leathery, oval shiny dark green above and brown/green below with orange/brown hairs. The leaves and shoots are eaten by game. It produces green flowers, male and female flowers on separate trees, in summer followed by colourful fruit that ripens in stages so they are green, white, yellow, pinkish, bright red, dark red and purple. fruits. These are enjoyed by the fruit eating birds, antelope, monkeys and people, but they are not easily digested. They taste sweet and slightly acidic, like mulberries. The female trees produce berries so plant a few to ensure that you will have fruit. They are eaten by Kudu, nyala, impala, monkeys, baboons, guinea fowl, francolin and other birds. The leaves are browsed by kudu, elephant, nyala and bushbuck. This species is a very decorative, neat shade tree and is suitable for gardens and bird parks. It is also used as a screen plant in a shrubbery. This tree is frost tender so should only be planted in frost free areas in the sun, and not suitable for a Highveld garden. An ideal plant for containers. It attracts birds and butterflies. The wood is used for hut building and fuel. Bark, leaves and fruit are used medicinally for stomach complaints. The roots are said to be toxic but if you bath in water with roots added to the it, it will cure bodily aches and pains. The flowers smell like honey or rotting watermelon. The name is derived from the Greek 'anti'=against and Johannes Burman's term for poison. (He was a friend of Linnaeus). This plant is used as an anti-venom for snake bite.

These medium sized evergreen trees are frost resistant, drought resistant and are happy in the sun or the shade. It tolerates poor soil and coastal winds so is useful to stabilize sand dunes at the coast.The cream flowers are rich in nectar and open in summer. They attract birds like the shrikes and the orioles, butterflies and mammals. The leaves are browsed by Nyala, Bushbuck,Diuker and the Black Rhino strip the bark. The early settlers burnt them and used the ash to make soap whereas the Zulu diviners use the stems and roots to communicate with their ancestors. It is used medicinally as the leaves are pounded and ingested for intestinal parasite and roundworm. discolor means varying in colour which refers to the dark upper leaf and the silver under leaf. It is also used as a tonic for diabetes. The wood is used for carving, boat and hut making, fencing and spear shafts. It has non-aggressive roots so can be planted 3 meters walls or in pots. It is also useful as a hedge or windbreak.

This very beautiful, medium sized, evergreen tree is drought resistant. It grows in semi-shade and has magnificent terminal sprays of pink , scented flowers in summer. These attract insects. The name literally means 'beautiful tree' which comes from the Greek kalos=beautiful and dendron=tree. They attract insects so it's great for the insect eating birds. It is the larval host plant for the Citrus Swallowtail, Emperor Swallowtail and the Green-banded Swallowtail butterflies and two moth species. This tree attracts mammals as the samango and vervet monkeys eat the fruit as well as fruit eating birds like the parrots, pigeons and doves. The Xhosa hunters use the seeds in bracelets to bring luck. It.and has non-aggressive roots and makes a lovely street tree. It is a magical tree.The pale yellow wood is tough and pliable and is used for furniture and the flowers are long lasting in a vase. Soap is made from the boiled seeds. The bark is sold at street markets as a beauty product.

This medium deciduous tree, is frost resistant, drought resistant and fast growing in sun or semi-shade. if well watered it will grow 2 meters a year. It occurs from the Cape Peninsula to Ethiopia. Tiny yellow, sweetly scented flowers occur in summer and they attract insect and fruit eating birds. The fruit is also eaten by monkeys and baboon. The tree is also browsed by game like kudu, nyala, bushbuck, impala and grey duiker. It is also used for nesting sites and a tall perch from which to lookout. Butterflies like the African Snout, Blue-spotted Emperor and the Foxy Emperor as well as several moths are also attracted to this fodder tree. It is a popular bonsai subject and the wood is used for furniture, construction, flooring, mine props, toys, ladders, boxes and crates. It is also used for firewood as well as charcoal production.It can be planted in a container. The common name is as a result of the unpleasant smell when the wood is first cut. It is magical as is used to protect against lightening by mixing the wood shavings with crocodile fat. The medicinal uses are numerous, treating a fever, headache, sore eyes and pleurisy. The bark is made into rope. It is always found where there is underground water or streams. Plant it 6 meters from buildings or pools. This is a protected tree in South Africa.

This is a medium to large deciduous tree with reddish autumn colours. Flowers are cream to pale yellow, slightly scented and open in September to November. The fruit are small, 4-winged and a greenish brown colour, ripening to yellowish brown and drying to a honey-brown. They stay on the tree for a long time. The fruit is poisonous and results in hiccups. A popular shade tree, surprisingly drought and frost resistant and fast growing, reaching 4-6 m in three years. The gum has interesting antibiotic properties and is applied to sores. It is non-toxic, elastic, producing a non-cracking varnish. Ornaments, cattle troughs and grain mortars are made from the wood, which is yellow, tough and easily worked. It is also used as fire wood. A dark, rich brown dye is extracted from the roots which is used when tanning hides. The dried fruits also work well in flower arrangements and are eaten by pied barbets. It has non-aggressive roots and attracts birds. It is the larval host plant for several butterflies like Liordes Hairtail, Red -tab Policeman, Two-pip Policeman and the Orange-barred Playboy. I just love these charming butterfly names! It is an ideal tree for wetlands as well as game farms as it is browsed by Kudu, Bushbuck, Eland, Giraffe and Elephant. It is often used as a street tree, in large gardens and along rivers. There are many medicinal uses. Root bark and stem bark are used to treat a cough, infertility, leprosy and VD. The bark is taken during labour to ease childbirth, to treat infertility and as an aphrodisiac. The leaves are used for coughs and abdominal pains.The roots, which some regard as poisonous are used as a purgative, to treat venereal diseases and as a prophylactic for V.D. The roots are fed to dogs by the Zulu to fatten them up.

This a small to medium sized, evergreen tree grows from 2-13m. The stem can be single or multi-stemmed. The bark is a light grey-brown and it becomes rough and flaking on older trees. The flowers are small and greenish yellow. Male and female flowers are borne on separate trees from August to December. The fruits are found only on female trees. They are bright orange and oval in shape with a velvety texture. They reach up to 25 mm long and appear from November to May. The wild apricot is a good tree for wild fruit which tastes sour but refreshing and is eaten by people and animals. The fruit makes a good jelly but some sweetening is required. The thorns which provide protection for birds' nests, along with the fruit make this an excellent wildlife garden tree. The caterpillars of the African Leopard Butterfly feed on the leaves. In the garden, the wild apricot is tolerant of moderate frost, although young plants should be protected for the first two years. It is also drought resistant and grows well in either full sun or light shade. It grows well in sandy or loamy soil to which compost has been added. Because of its non aggressive roots system its an ideal plant for containers. A lovely shrub/tree for birds and butterflies.

This is a medium sized evergreen tree with a straight trunk, attractive bark and a rounded canopy which is fast growing in the sun and frost hardy. Do protect young trees for the first few years. The twigs and leaf stalks are reddish in colour. Sweetly scented, white flowers occur in spring or early summer. They are followed by fruit which ripen on the female trees in autumn, turning bright red, are densely packed along the stems. They provide bright splashes of colour, attracting many kinds of birds, like louries, doves, pigeons, bulbuls, starlings and barbets. It is a useful tree which attracts butterflies and can be used near wetlands. It is also medicinal as the bark is chewed as a purgative. Elephants eat the leaves. The leaves create a lather when rubbed together. The wood was used to make wagons, furniture, fuel and the heels of ladies high heeled shoes. Roots are non aggressive so plant it 3 meters from a building or a pool.

This medium sized, well shaped and reasonably robust tree has smooth pale grey bark that becomes rough with age. It is found from the Cape Peninsula to Tanzania. The variable leaves of this evergreen tree may resemble those of the peach. The tiny, bell-shaped flowers which bloom from spring to summer, are yellow-green, with male and female flowers on separate trees. The hard, round, knobbly, greenish yellow capsule which forms in late summer to mid-winter splits to expose shiny black seeds, enclosed in an oily, sticky, bright orange-red coat. The birds like pigeons, doves, woodpeckers, louries, hornbills, robinss, shrikes, starlings. thrush, white - eyes and mousebirds can’t resist these seeds. This tree is said to attract lightning, but some people use it to protect their homes. It is frost hardy and drought resistant and it needs to be planted in full sun. The wood is used for furniture. It is a larval host for the Garden Acraea and the Battling Glider butterflies. This tree is always found where there is underground water or streams. The roots are not aggressive so plant it 4 meters from a building or a pool. Names for Francois Kiggelaer (1648-1722) a Dutch botanist, plant collector, traveller and curator of Simon van Beaumont's garden in The Hague.

It occurs in Natal and the Transkei. A deciduous medium sized tree. It is a spreading tree with a good canopy. The leaves show seasonal colour changes as the new leaves are glossy yellow the colour being almost masked by the purple-brown veins and mature leaves are conventional green. The flowers are pea-shaped, deep bright lilac or purple and cover the tree in spring. The fruits are hard, velvety, brown-coloured pods, with green and gold wefts that glint in bright sunshine. It requires full sun to semi-shade and it can survive moderate drought and frost. Baboons strip and eat the bark. The hard wood is used to make furniture, walking sticks and was used for ox wagon parts. The root is used medicinally to induce sleep and dispel worries. This is the recipe: roots are ground with Croton root, add 1 part lion fat, ground lion bone and 1 part python fat and this is burnt . The seeds and roots are used for arrow and fish poison. It is also the larval host plant for the Pondo Emperor and the Orange-barred Playboy butterflies. This is my favourite tree as the new leaves are attractive, the tree is a show stopper when in flower, the velvet seed pods are lovely as are the seeds. The roots are not aggressive so plant it 3 meters from a building or a pool. Named for Charles Millet (1792-1873) was a plant collector who worked for the Dutch East India Company in China. He collected botanical samples from China, Ceylon and Java which he sent to Kew Gardens and Cambridge University.

It is potentially a large, evergreen tree with a rounded crown which may reach up to 15 m under ideal, warm, frost free, moist conditions. It can also be a shrub or small tree in its natural range and only reaches its full potential in protected valleys and forest margins where moisture is more available. Small, white, sweetly scented flowers are borne in October to February. Fruits are oval with a pointed tip ripening yellow or orange from April to September. It looks good when planted near pools where there is full sun. An ideal plant for containers and bonsai because it has non aggressive roots. It attracts birds and is the larval host plant for the Boisduval's False Acraea and the Chief False Acraea butterflies. The timber is used for furniture.

This handsome, medium sized tree is moderately frost hardy. It is a protected tree in South Africa. This is a highland forest species that grows best on moist sites with high rainfall and deep soils. It is a very neat, decorative tree suitable for both home gardens and large landscapes. It makes and excellent specimen tree for lawns and is a good choice for an avenue. It is also suited for formal gardens, as it responds well to pruning. It has male and female reproductive organs on separate plants. Male Podocarpus henkelii cones are erect, pink, and 2-3 cm long and are solitary or in clusters of up to 5. Female cones are solitary, but the stalk is short. The seed is large and roundish and 1,5-2 cm in diameter and olive green to yellowish green when ripe. Louries, pigeons and parrots eat the fruit. It attracts butterflies. It is a magical tree as the bark is chewed and spat out into the wind while the loved one's name is repeated. The roots are not aggressive so it makes a good bonsai. Plant it about 5 meters from a building and a pool. The name is derived from the Greek podos = foot and karpos - fruit, referring to the fleshy foot , the receptacle, on which the fruit develops.

Nature's wonder plant that purifies the air. A friend of mine has one growing in a pot in every room in her home. The porkbush is an attractive, evergreen succulent shrub or small tree that can reach 2 - 5 m in height, although usually around 1.5 - 2 m in a garden situation. It is protected. It has small round succulent leaves and red stems. Small star-shaped light pink to deep red flowers are borne en masse from late winter to spring although flowering in cultivation is often erratic. They are a rich source of nectar for many insects, which in-turn attracts insectivorous birds and is used as nesting sites. Bees use the nectar to make honey. It also attracts butterflies. The fruit are like inflated paper lanterns and are mauve or rose coloured. They thrive in warm situations on rocky slopes, in bushveld and dry river valleys. This bushy tree makes a lovely screen or hedge. The leaves of the porkbush can be eaten and have a sour or tart flavour. It is heavily browsed by game and domestic stock and highly favoured by tortoises. The porkbush is useful for preventing soil erosion. Traditional uses also include the increasing of breast milk for lactating mothers. The leaves are used to quench thirst, and sucking a leaf is used to treat exhaustion, dehydration and heat stroke. There are many medicinal uses as crushed leaves can be rubbed on blisters and corns on the feet to provide relief. The leaves are chewed as a treatment for a sore throat and mouth infections while the astringent juice is used for soothing skin conditions such as pimples, rashes and insect stings. The juice is also used as an antiseptic and as a treatment for sunburn. The leaves are excellent fodder for most domestic animals and game such as grey duiker, klipspringer, impala, bushbuck, nyala, kudu and elephant. A sprig is placed on top of Tomato Bredie as it is cooking and this imparts an elusive and tangy taste.

This evergreen, medium tree grows up to 10 m tall in woodlands but reaches 20 m in forests. It has a dense roundish crown. The bark on younger branches is smooth and grey-brown, but darker grey, rough and cracked like crocodile skin on older branches. The glossy green leaves are often crowded towards the ends of the branches and have little bumps. The beautiful bell-shaped flowers are borne singly in summer. They are creamy white with purplish red streaks and speckled inside the flower tube. They have a strong sweet scent, which lingers even after they dry. They are followed by round, hard, green fruits with leathery skin and marked with faint grooves. The fruits soften when ripe and turn brown. They contain many flat seeds embedded in pulp. The fruit is enjoyed by baboon, monkeys bushbuck, grey duiker and bushpig.. This beautiful tree is suitable for a small garden as it has non aggressive roots. It grows very well in light shade or full sun, preferring loam or sandy soils to clay. It grows moderately fast (0.7 m per year) and may flower in its second year, but most take a little longer. Do protect young trees from frost. It attracts birds and butterflies. It is used medicinally to treat wounds, leprosy, burns and rheumatism. The wood is hard and strong and is used hut building, fuel and tools. For Joran(George) Johansson Rothman (1739-1778) a Swedish botanist, physian and translator.

This tree has recently changed its name from Rhus lancea. It is wide spread and is only missing from Kwazulu Natal. It grows to 5-10 meters and makes a lovely evergreen shade tree, hedge, wind break and roadside tree. It is in the top 5 frost and drought hardy trees. Our grandsons loved climbing these trees when they were little as they branch low down if left to their own devices. It attracts birds and butterflies and the fruit is enjoyed by our staff, although it is sour and it is traditionally also used to make mead or tea. It is also eaten by birds like bulbuls and the fallen fruit is eaten by guineafowl and francolins. The leaves and bark produce a brown dye. The leaves are also eaten by game like kudu, roan and sable, so it’s a good fodder tree on a game farm. This tree indicates surface or underground water and it does not have aggressive roots. The wood is used as fencing posts as it is termite proof. The bark is used for tanning. Bushmen used the branches as shepherd's crooks. It is protected in the Northern Cape and the Jacobsdal area in the Free State. It is browsed by game . Plant it 5 meters from a building or a pond. It is used medicinally as roots, stem bark and leaves treat skin diseases. Roots are used for abdominal and chest complaints and the leaves are used for measles. Their vapour is inhaled for a cough. The name is derived fro the Greek rhous, = red; referring to the fruits or the autumn leaves. Named for Paul Sears( 1891-1990) a US plant ecologist and professor who authored many books.

This willowy evergreen small to medium-sized tree, 4 to 9 m tall. It is quick and easy to grow, tolerates wind and drought, and is evergreen with a graceful habit and a neat crown. It won't get too big and it's not untidy. Tiny green flowers are produced in spring-summer. They are inconspicuous, but attract bees and other insects. The flowers are followed by small rounded berries, green turning reddish and drying to black, usually ripening in the autumn. They are eaten by starlings, barbets and bulbuls. The sour fruits are eaten when dry. It is the food plant for the Charaxes butterfly.It has non-aggressive roots, is frost hardy, drought resistant and fast growing. Milk is infused with leaves and given to children for stomach upsets. The wood is used as it is durable and termite proof and is therefore used for building. The thin branc It is the larval host for the Macken's Dart, Burnished Opal, Mooi River Opal, Namaqua Arrowhead and the Pringle's Arrowhead butterflies. hes are used for making fish traps. It is a protected tree in South Africa. The name is derived fro the Greek rhous, = red; referring to the fruits or the autumn leaves. Named for Paul Sears( 1891-1990) a US plant ecologist and professor who authored many books.